The Repeal Movement against Licensed Prostitution in Japan during the 1930s

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to make clear the evolution and logic of the repeal movement against licensed prostitution by the Japan Women's Christian Temperance Union (JWCTU) during the 1930s in Nagano prefecture. At that time licensed prostitution was declining, while, according to the newspapers, "modern" private prostitution solicited by hostesses in cafes was increasing. In Nagano Prefecture, a motion in the prefectural assembly calling for the repeal of licensed prostitution was passed in 1930. At the same time, a motion permitting and regulating private prostitution tacitly was passed. After that, the prefecture and the police required cafe hostesses to pay a tax and be inspected for venereal disease. The JWCTU, which made much of monogamy and child-rearing, insisted that licensed prostitution was sexism and exerted a bad influence on children, because it encouraged human traffic, venereal disease, and demoralization. Therefore, the JWCTU felt that repealing licensed prostitution was the first thing to do to root out all prostitution, and lobbying passage of the motion against licensed prostitution was given the highest priority. In order to get the support of the many members in the prefectural assembly who were not against prostitution, the repealers changed the main point of the motion; but this change was only a strategy, as the goals of the movement themselves did not change. The fact that the JWCTU was against a motion reflecting licensed brothel keepers' interests proves this point. After the passage of the motion, the JWCTU held a lecture on sex education attempting to improve girls' self-confidence about sex and boys' respect for girls. The idea of sex education in the 1930s was almost the same as the logic of the repeal movement during the 1920s. The plan of a "women's home" was also based on this idea of sex education. On the other hand, the idea of sex education encouraged the JWCTU to demand to the regulation of hostesses and cafes, in order to keep them out of their residential areas.